
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, November 28, 1995                   TAG: 9511280139
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: From wire reports
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

THE PEOPLE COLUMN

Jim Perdue, the poultry king, didn't chicken out when it came to volunteering his time as a street-corner Santa.

When Perdue heard about a shortage of part-time bell ringers who raise money for the Salvation Army, he decided to give it a wing, starting his ho-ho-ho-ing over the weekend at a local mall.

``I'll be out there ringing a bell this year,'' said Perdue, president and chief executive officer of Perdue Farms Inc of Salisbury, Md.

The chicken chief had already planned to donate birds to feed the needy. But Perdue said what caught his attention was when he heard the Santa situation was so bad that the local Salvation Army chapter was planning on paying them $5 an hour.

by CNB